The Illinois Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected a bid by prosecutors to resentence a former Chicago police officer for the controversial shooting death of Laquan McDonald, a black teen whose killing exacerbated tensions between police and the African-American community.

CHICAGO – The Illinois Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected a bid by prosecutors to resentence a former Chicago police officer for the controversial shooting death of Laquan McDonald, a black teen whose killing exacerbated tensions between police and the city’s African-American community.

Officer Jason Van Dyke was sentenced in January to six years and nine months in prison for the murder of the teen in 2014. He was convicted last year of second-degree murder and 16 counts of aggravated battery with a firearm, one count for each shot fired at the teen in the October 2014 incident.

But McDonald’s family and civil-rights activists said the sentence was too lenient.

Two of the seven Illinois Supreme Court justices offered a dissenting opinion to the order denying the petition for resentencing. One justice, Mary Jane Theis, did not take part in the decision.

The dissenting judges said they believed Cook County Circuit Court Judge Vincent Gaughan improperly interpreted case law when he sentenced Van Dyke for the second-degree murder charge, not the aggravated battery with a firearm.

Under Illinois statute, the aggravated battery charge is the more serious one. With the high court's ruling, Gaughan's sentencing will stand.

“The trial court's actions here were clearly improper as a matter of law," Justice Thomas Kilbride wrote. "Under these circumstances, I believe this court should enter a supervisory order directing the trial court and resentence Van Dyke in accordance with the applicable sentencing law, including this court’s relevant decisions."

In filing their petition last month, Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul and special prosecutor Joseph McMahon acknowledged their attempt for winning a resentencing was unusual and, perhaps, a long shot.

Raoul expressed disappointment that the court's majority chose not to offer any insight into how it ruled.

“The majority’s denial, without explanation, does not confirm whether Judge Gaughan’s sentence is consistent with Illinois law," Raoul said. "Nonetheless, we recognize and respect the court’s authority, which it can exercise without a specific request."

Dan Herbert, Van Dyke's defense attorney, said he was pleased with the court's decision.

"We hope that the decision will strike a fatal blow to the political exploitation of the death of Laquan McDonald," Herbert said in a statement. "Our judicial system may not be perfect. However the bedrock of the system maintains that all defendants, including unpopular ones, are entitled to fair and impartial treatment."

State law requires that Van Dyke serve at least 50 percent of the sentence. He served some three months as he awaited sentencing, so he could be out of prison in less than three years.

Van Dyke confronted McDonald after police were called to a parking lot on the southwest side of Chicago on the evening of Oct. 20, 2014, in response to reports of a person breaking into trucks and stealing radios.

Officers arrived to find the 17-year-old McDonald walking erratically in the street with a small knife.

Van Dyke pulled up to the scene, got out of his squad car and within seconds opened fire. He shot the teen 16 times. The shooting was captured on police dashcam video.

The city was forced by court order to release video of the shooting 400 days after the incident, the same day prosecutors announced charges against Van Dyke.

“Neither the Supreme Court’s decision today, nor the sentence determined by Judge Gaughan rescinds the felony convictions or undermines the jury’s verdict, or makes me any less proud of my team’s exemplary work the last 2½ years," McMahon said. "I respect the justices’ ruling.”

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Former Chicago police Officer Jason Van Dyke, left and his attorney Daniel Herbert exit following his sentencing hearing at the Leighton Criminal Court Building on Jan. 18, 2019 in Chicago. Van Dyke was sentenced to six years and nine months for the 2014 fatal shooting of 17-year-old African-American Laquan McDonald. Pool photo by Antonio Perez, AFP/Getty Images

Former Chicago police Officer Jason Van Dyke, left,reacts during his sentencing hearing at the Leighton Criminal Court Building on Jan. 18, 2019 in Chicago. Van Dyke was sentenced to six years and nine months for the 2014 fatal shooting of 17-year-old African-American Laquan McDonald. Pool photo by Antonio Perez

Chicago Police Officers guard the area outside of the Leighton Criminal Courts Building during the sentencing of the Officer Jason Van Dyke on Jan. 18, 2019 in Chicago, Illinois. Van Dyke, a white police officer, is to be sentenced Friday for the fatal shooting of McDonald, and African-American 17-year-old, in 2014. Kamil Krzaczynski, AFP/Getty Images

A man, with a Pan-African flag, protests outside of the Leighton Criminal Courts Building during the sentencing of Officer Jason Van Dyke on Jan. 18, 2019 in Chicago, Illinois. Kamil Krzaczynski, AFP/Getty Images

Edward Nance, who alleged he was roughed up by Officer Jason Van Dyke during a traffic stop on the South Side in 2007, testifies at Van Dyke's sentencing hearing at the Leighton Criminal Court Building Jan. 18, 2019 in Chicago, Illinois. Van Dyke was found guilty in October 2018 of second-degree murder and 16 counts of aggravated battery in the on-duty shooting of McDonald. Pool photo by Antonio Perez

Rev. Marvin Hunter speaks to reporters after a judge acquitted three Chicago police officers of trying to cover up the 2014 shooting of black teenager Laquan McDonald, Thursday, Jan. 17, 2019, in Chicago. Judge Domenica Stephenson said that after considering all of the evidence, including police dashcam video of the killing, she didn't find that officer Thomas Gaffney, Joseph Walsh and David March conspired to cover up the shooting. The officer who shot McDonald 16 times, Jason Van Dyke, was convicted of murder in October and is due to be sentenced Friday. Noreen Nasir, AP

Chicago Police Officer Thomas Gaffney, back left, sits next to ex-officer Joseph Walsh, back right, as they listens to a judge's ruling at the Leighton Criminal Court Building, Thursday, Jan. 17, 2019 in Chicago. A judge acquitted three Chicago police officers of trying to cover up the 2014 shooting of black teenager Laquan McDonald. Judge Domenica Stephenson said that after considering all of the evidence, including police dashcam video of the killing, she didn't find that officer Gaffney, Walsh and David March conspired to cover up the shooting. The officer who shot McDonald 16 times, Jason Van Dyke, was convicted of murder in October and is due to be sentenced Friday. Pool photo by Zbigniew Bzdak

Tina Hunter, mother of Laquan McDonald, watches during the murder trial of Chicago police Officer Jason Van Dyke at the Leighton Criminal Court Building Sept. 24, 2018 in Chicago, Illinois. Van Dyke is charged with shooting and killing 17-year-old McDonald, who was walking away from police down a street holding a knife four years ago. Pool photo by Antonio Perez

Lead defense attorney Daniel Herbert gestures at an animated video during the trial of Chicago police Officer Jason Van Dyke at the Leighton Criminal Court Building Sept. 25, 2018 in Chicago, Illinois. Van Dyke, who is white, is charged with shooting and killing black 17-year-old Laquan McDonald, who was walking away from police down a street holding a knife four years ago. Pool photo by Antonio Perez

Jason Van Dyke's lawyer, Daniel Herbert, motions with the 3-inch blade Laquan McDonald carried the night he was fatally shot, during opening statements in the trial of Chicago police officer Jason Van Dyke at the Leighton Criminal Court Building on Sept. 17, 2018 in Chicago, Illinois. Van Dyke is on trial for the murder of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald who died after allegedly being shot by Van Dyke 16 times on October 20, 2014. Pool photo by Antonio Perez

In this Nov. 27, 2015, file photo, protesters take part in a "march for justice" in Chicago, in the wake of the release of video showing an officer fatally shooting Laquan McDonald. Special prosecutor Patricia Brown-Holmes announced Tuesday, June 27, 2017, that three Chicago police officers were indicted on felony charges that they conspired to cover up the actions of Chicago Police Officer Jason Van Dyke in the killing of McDonald. The indictment, approved by a Cook County grand jury, alleges that one current and two former officers lied about the events of Oct. 20, 2014 when Van Dyke shot the black teenager 16 times. Nam Y. Huh, AP

Chicago Police officer Jason Van Dyke, charged with murder in the 2014 videotaped shooting death of black teenager Laquan McDonald, walks in the courtroom at the Leighton Criminal Court Building in Chicago on Wednesday, March 23, 2016, for a status hearing in his case. A judge gave prosecutors until May 5 to respond to a petition requesting that a special prosecutor take over in the case. Pool photo by Nancy Stone, AP

Protestors lie in the street as they march, chant, shout and block intersections and stores along Michigan Avenue's Magnificent Mile' shopping area as they call for the resignation of Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel in Chicago, Ill. on Dec. 24, 2015. Activists called for the demonstration on Christmas Eve as they continue to display dissatisfaction over the handling of the investigation into the police shooting of teenager Laquan McDonald. Tannen Maury, EPA

Demonstrators hold a vigil in Federal Building Plaza after marching through downtown on Dec. 12, 2015 in Chicago, Illinois. A recently released video showing the shooting of teenager Laquan McDonald by Chicago Police officer Jason Van Dyke has sparked almost daily protests in the city and calls for Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Cook County State's Attorney Anita Alvarez to resign for trying to cover up the circumstances surrounding the shooting. Scott Olson, Getty Images

Demonstrators confront police during a protest following the release of a video showing Chicago Police officer Jason Van Dyke shooting and killing Laquan McDonald on Nov. 24, 2015 in Chicago, Illinois. Van Dyke was charged today with first degree murder for the October 20, 2014 shooting in which McDonald was hit with 16 bullets. Scott Olson, Getty Images

Rev. Jesse Jackson right, hugs Fred Hampton Jr., left, after a vigil for 17-year-old Laquan McDonald, who was fatally shot and killed Oct. 20, 2014 in Chicago. Chicago police Officer Jason Van Dyke was charged Tuesday, Nov. 24, 2015, with first degree murder in the killing. Hampton's father Fred Hampton Sr. was the Illinois chapter President of the Black Panther Party and was shot and killed in 1969. Paul Beaty, AP

Protesters take to the streets chanting and blocking traffic after the release of a video showing Chicago police officer Jason Van Dyke, shooting 17 year old Laquan McDonald in Chicago, Ill. on 24 Nov. 24, 2015. A judge denied bond for Van Dyke who is accused of shooting McDonald 16 times on Oct. 20, 2014. Tannen Maury, EPA

A memorial to 17-year-old Laquan McDonald and other victims of violence at the Sullivan House Alternative High School in Chicago is seen on April 17, 2015. McDonald was shot 16 times by Chicago police Officer Jason Van Dyke in October 2014. A judge has ordered the video of the shooting to be made public. Zbigniew Bzdak, Chicago Tribune/TNS via Getty Images

In this handout provided by the Cook County State's Attorney's Office, Chicago police officer Jason Van Dyke poses for a mugshot photo after he was was arrested for the shooting death of an African-American teen in Chicago, Illinois. Van Dyke has been charged with first degree murder for shooting 17-year-old Laquan McDonald 16 times on Oct. 20, 2014 after responding to a call of a knife wielding man who had threatened the complainant and was attempting to break into vehicles in a trucking yard. Cook County State's Attorney's Office via Getty Images

A handout image provided by the Office of the Medical Examiner of Cook County, Illinois, on Nov. 24, 2015, shows a diagram of bullet holes allegedly suffered by 17 year-old Laquan McDonald in a police shooting incident in October 2014. The 17 year-old was allegedly shot 16 times by Chicago Police Officer Jason Van Dyke on 20 October 2014. Cook County Medical Examiner via EPA

A frame grab from a dash cam video released by the Chicago Police on Nov. 24, 2015 which shows the fatal shooting of 17 year-old Laquan McDonald, center, by Chicago police officers, left, in Chicago, Ill. Oct. 20, 2014. Chicago police officer Jason Van Dyke was charged with first-degree murder on Nov. 24, 2015. He allegedly shot Laquan McDonald 16 times, continuing fire after the teenager fell to the ground, and stopped only after another police officer told him to do so. A police video of the shooting was released on 24 November, and the police force had ordered officers to prepare for possible protests, the Chicago Tribune newspaper reported. Cook Country State's Attorney Anita Alvarez had taken more than a year to investigate the incident before filing the murder charge, but said she moved to file charges ahead of the video's release. Van Dyke has turned himself in and was being held without bail. The police union has said Van Dyke acted in fear of his life after McDonald lunged at him with a knife. Chicago Police via EPA